This invention relates to herbicidally active propylene oxide compounds, agriculturally suitable compositions thereof and a method of using the compounds and the compositions as general or selective preemergent and/or post-emergent herbicides or plant growth regulants.
In the most common situation, the control of undesired vegetation is desired to permit the growth of useful crops such as cotton, rice, corn, wheat and soybeans, to name a few. Unchecked weed growth in such useful crops can cause significant losses, reducing profit to the farmer and increasing costs to the consumer. In other situations, herbicides are desired which will control all plant growth. Examples of areas in which complete control of all vegetation is desired are areas around fuel storage tanks, ammunition depots and industrial storage areas. There are many products commercially available for these purposes, but the search continues for products which are more effective, less costly and environmentally safe.
Herbicidal compounds which exhibit sufficient selectivity, that is, which will control the growth of undesired vegetation but which will not damage useful crop plants are difficult to find. Even though there are herbicides which exhibit excellent selectivity on a number of crops while still controlling weeds at very low application rates there is a need to provide greater protection for crop plants than that provided by herbicides already disclosed. Propylene oxide derivatives of formula: ##STR1## where R is CH.sub.3 or phenyl, are described by H. Haubenstock and W. Naegele in Makromol. Chem., 97, 248 (1966). This article discusses the cationic polymerization of epoxides, but does not disclose any herbicidal utility for these compounds.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,211,549 discloses substituted oxirane compounds of formula ##STR2## where R is Cl, Br or CH.sub.3, and their use as herbicides.
Compounds of formula ##STR3## are described by D. V. Gardner, et al., J. Med. Chem., 22, 1373 (1979) and in British Pat. No. 1,448,437 (published Sept. 8, 1976), as intermediates in the synthesis of certain CNS-antidepressant agents.